That Fateful Morning
by Halan
Summary: A sequel to That Fateful Day, it tells the story of life in Hyrule for Saria, Malon, Zelda, and Rarau on the day that Link returns from his seven year slumber.


The silent night sky hung heavily over the broken land of Hyrule ****

That Fateful Morning

By: Halan

The silent night sky hung heavily over the broken land of Hyrule. Monsters roamed the Great Plains of Hyrule Field, making travel practically impossible without being part of a large convoy. Any lone traveler venturing out onto the field was never heard from again. They became either a victim of the Poes, the blood thirsty ghosts of warriors still hungry for the taste of blood on their sword, or the Stalchildren, the small child-like skeletons, resurrected from their former existance, forced to come up from the ground at night, grab the unfortunate traveler, and drag his body (or courpse, it mattered not) back into the ground and into their hellish world.

The Market Place had been deserted for the past seven years. During the great battle that was waged there by the Knights against the Evil King and his group of Bandits, the town had been obliterated, only a few broken buildings and its ashes remained, ashes of the town and ashes of the people left there to rot. No one dared to return to that ghost town, for they all feared the ReDeads, the soulless beings who wandered around the land in search of life to destroy. One did not know they were there until they heard its horrific scream, the scream that held in the pain of all its former victims. This scream froze anyone in their tracks, and then this demonic creature would simply suck the soul out of their victim's body.

Most of the survivors of that day had gathered at one of the few places left in Hyrule that was untouched by evil's cold grasp; Kakariko Village. They stayed inside their little town, cowering in fear behind its walls, suspicious of any newcomer who wandered into their safe haven. But they all knew it would not stay safe for long, the lumbering shadow of Death Mountain towered over their heads. As the years passed, the mountain became more and more sinister looking, a ring of smoke had formed around the top, the ring that indicated trouble within the active volcano. The well that had been sealed up so long ago was also acting up. Strange noises had become a regular occurrence around it; people knew it was only a matter of time before evil would rear its fearsome head and smite them all for evading it for so long.

But that day, the sun rose with more confidence than before, like it knew that things would be turning around for this broken nation. It sliced quickly through the star filled sky, shining brightly as it went, and remained there all day, refusing to have its golden light shadowed by the clouds.

~~

She softly brushed her hair out of her eyes, being careful not to touch the tender skin on her face. It was still raw and slightly bleeding from the attack the night before. He had come home drunk out of his mind, accusing her of various things she had not done. He had hit her; hit her with such force that it threw her to the ground in the stable. As she had fallen to the ground, her face had landed on a broken beam of wood, which had sliced through her delicate skin.

She walked around the stable that morning performing the same tasks that had been forced upon her seven years before. But she didn't like to think of them as her tasks, for she enjoyed doing them. Her "tasks" were taking care of the horses, and basically running the ranch, what she had done all of her life, only she received no credit for her hard work. Her master, the man who had kicked her father out of the ranch that fateful day, told her what she had to do, when she had to have it done by, when she could eat, when she could sleep. If she slacked in his orders, she would be beaten. If she was too badly beaten, or if she threatened to run away, he would beat the horses. He knew it broke her battered heart to see the horses beaten, it was his weapon against her. She did not care for herself; she would not have cared if death took her during the night. But the horses…the horses…she could not bear the thought of the horses being in pain because of her selfishness. So she stayed, each day living in her own personal hell. Her only escape was at night, when he had gone to bed. She would quietly slip out onto the field and sing her song, the song that made her soul fly free, the song her mother taught her, the song she had taught the boy…

She walked up to her horse, the little colt that she had raised since its birth. He neighed softly as she approached him, its warm brown eyes penetrating deeply into her own bright blue eyes. It knew of her pain, of the hell that she went through each day. As she stroked its muzzle, the horse looked up suddenly, as if it had sensed another presence in the room with it. The young girl looked around quickly, but saw no one. The horse began to stamp about madly, wanting to be free. She couldn't understand what was going on, it was usually such a gentle horse when around her, something must have set it off. She quickly let the horse out of the stable, and it shot off towards the exit of the ranch. She ran after it quickly, praying to the goddesses that it would not leave. But the horse stopped at the exit; he paced back and forth as if he knew he could not leave. She walked up to the horse and patted its neck, softly humming her mother's song to it. As the melody went through her head, a vision flashed through with it. In her vision was the young boy that had came to the ranch almost 7 years before. Tears began to flow down her face as she remembered him, his smile, his boyish good looks, his great sense of humor, and his bright fairy, they all came flooding back to her in that instant. She snapped out of her vision, feeling overwhelmed. She looked at the horse; it was staring at her again. The horse seemed to nod, as if it knew what she had been thinking. She smiled, something she had not done in quite some time, and walked Epona back to the stable. As she walked, she felt a cool breeze begin to pick up from the east, so she stopped, and let it fly around her. It flew around her legs, up her body and through her fiery red hair, blowing it across her tear streamed face, wiping the tears off as gently as a mother would. She smiled again and walked back into the stable. Malon spoke a silent wish that morning, that the little boy she had laughed with so many years before would return, and deliver her from her personal hell.

~~

As the morning sun rose over the forest, the gentle rays of light filtered its way through the trees overhead. The children of the forest awoke from their evening slumber full of energy, ready to face the next day and the events that it would bring. But there was no sound of joyous running of feet on the ground today. The only sound that had been around these days was the sound of feet, running quickly from home to home, feet with a sense of purpose, driven by fear. 

The days, weeks, months and years following that fateful day had been troublesome. Following the untimely death of the Great Deku Tree, the forest had lost its harmonic balance with evil. No longer protected by its creator, the forest had become slowly overrun by various monsters from the outside world, monsters that cared not for life inside the forest, only for destroying all that lay in front of them. The children of the forest were forced to remain indoors all day and all night, only the bravest venturing out for food and to check on the others. Even these visits were quick, they had to be to avoid the Deku nuts that flew at their heads each time they left their homes, or the vicious Wolfos that licked at their heels as they ran. 

She sat alone in the Lost Woods, on a stump that was off to the side, out of view. She knew she wasn't supposed to wander off into the woods by herself, it was dangerous enough out in the forest, but the woods could become confusing in an instant, and one could be lost forever in its labyrinth. But she knew the Lost Woods like the back of her hand, and she could sense any animal before it even had the chance to spring upon her. 

She sat there that day with great worries troubling her heart. They had managed to survive this long without any casualties, but how much longer could they endure? The monsters were becoming more and more frequent, there were new ones popping up out of nowhere each day. They were becoming stronger too, that she was sure of. The sudden appearance of the Wolfos had convinced her of that. Before it had been easy, just a few Deku Scrubs that were easily vanquished with a Deku Stick. But the Deku Babas, and the Wolfos, they were too much for the children to handle. Something had to be done, but she did not know what.

As she sat there on the rotting stump of a former tree, she suddenly felt a cool breeze pick up from the east. She shivered as it traveled past her. They had not had breezes such as these in such a long while, not since he had left…

She sprang up from her sitting position suddenly. She had heard something, she was sure of it. A faint whisper almost, as if someone was trying to talk to her from a vast distance. Then, she heard it again, only more clearly. It was not the voice of someone; it was an ocarina playing. The young girl listened intently, her ears begging to be able to hear the unheard. Then, tears came to her eyes as she recognized the song that was playing on the ocarina. It was her song, the song that she had created. The only ones that knew of her song were her fellow forest dwellers, they were the only ones, except for one….the boy….

The young energetic girl began to run back to the forest, to tell her friends of what she had heard, but something inside of her stopped her in her tracks. Evil was approaching, not from the forest, but from within the Lost Woods. She knew that the Lost Woods held the final key to the forest's destruction. Only she could hold off the evil long enough for the one, the chosen one the ancients told about, to help. She shook her head sadly and trotted off in the direction of the Forest Temple, the place where she knew evil would begin its strike. 

Saria turned around once before she entered the temple, glancing at the stump just below the broken staircase, where she had taught her song of joy to the young boy so long ago. She silently prayed to the goddesses that he would hear her cry for help from within the temple, and return to her, return…to his friend…

~~

The strong young woman stepped out of her home very early that day, even before the sun had risen. Something was different about today, she could feel it. She wrapped herself in the Sheikan clothing that had been provided to her by the kind people at the village. She needed it, her dresses had not been enough to keep her warm in the frigid climate that she and her companion had been forced to travel to. The tight fitting body suit that the Sheikan wore provided excellent protection from the cold wind gusts. 

As she walked through the small town during the wee hours of the morning, a mischievous little boy who was out far after his bedtime ran by her and snatched the head covering off her head. The young woman gasped in surprise as her long golden hair gently fell out of its hiding place and onto her back. The little boy held up his prize triumphantly, laughing and giggling, and ran off before the girl had any time to react. She simply shook her head and smiled, and continued on her walk. 

These past few years had been troublesome. Word from home traveled slowly, and even then, the word was never good. From the reports that had managed to make it past the barrage of monsters, Hyrule was in ruins. There was practically no one left, save a few poor souls who managed to evade the evil forces. The king was presumed dead, as was the boy she had entrusted with her ocarina that one fateful day….

She snapped out of her daydreaming when she bumped into her companion, the one who had taken her to this place of refuge so many years before. The elderly lady seemed full of worry, something was troubling her deeply, and the young woman could see it in her eyes. They walked to quiet corner of the village and talked in low voices. It was then that she heard the news.

Hyrule was practically destroyed. There was almost nothing left. But, a shining glimmer of hope was appearing on the horizon, like the sun rising in the east. He was returning. The hero was returning. He was not dead, as many had come to think. He was only away, locked up in another realm. He had been put there so that he might bide his time, become older and stronger so that he might be able to overturn the evil forces that had plagued this once great land for so long. He would be their savior, their hope for the future. 

The young woman danced with joy as soon as she heard the news. The young boy was all right; he had survived these hard times just as she had. She had to see him, to greet him. But the elderly lady warned her. The evil king was still about, and he was looking for her. She must not re-enter Hyrule until he had been vanquished, for if she did, she would surely be captured, and used as bait for the boy. The young woman's heart sank as she heard this, she nodded weakly in agreement and followed the elderly lady back into their home.

As the sun rose that morning, the young woman silently crept out of her home. Careful not to make any noise, she prepared one of the horses for travel. She did not care if she was captured, she knew she had to go back, she had to help the boy with the enormous task that had been laid upon his shoulders. She closed her eyes for a moment, and muttered an old Sheikan spell. It took effect instantly, changing her eye color, voice, and shape of her body. It was a mere illusion, but a good one. She leapt onto the horse and sped off towards Hyrule. A cool breeze coming from the east flew by her as she left the safety of her home. The breeze urged her onward, it gave her a sense of responsibility, and she would not rest until she had met the boy, and helped him defeat the evil in the land.

Impa watched as Zelda sped away on her horse. She knew that she would not have been able to stop her, even if she had tried. The girl had too much of her mother's determination in her, nothing would stand in her way. Impa got onto her own horse, and galloped off after the determined girl. What had surprised her most was that Zelda had changed her appearance, the Sheikan that she had transformed herself into reminded Impa of her great-grandfather, the mysterious Sheik.

~~

The old man stood in his realm waiting patiently. He was coming any second now, that he knew, the one who would be a hero among men, and a savior among his people. The old man glanced around the realm that he had learned to call home, and waited.

Suddenly a strong breeze picked up from the east. The old man looked up to see the familiar blue balls of light flittering down in a spiral above his head. He smiled as the blue light landed in front of him, and materialized into a young man. He was stronger that he had expected. The old man remembered when he had first pulled him into this realm seven years before on that fateful day. He was such a small boy, but the old man could tell he was wise beyond his age. One look into the determined eyes of that boy convinced the old man that he was the chosen one. The boy possessed far more knowledge than he would ever know, knowledge of generations past, and knowledge of the beginnings of their world. But these were all locked away; this knowledge would not be needed for his current task. Perhaps it would be useful to the next hero that would have to arise. For now, the boy was prepared for the task at hand, the task…of saving their world.

As the young man awoke, he appeared startled. The old man smiled at his bewilderment, he too would have been confused if one minute he was standing in a great temple with a sword in his hand, and then the next moment he was in a strange new realm. The old man spoke out loud to the young warrior, and began explaining to him the events that had taken place. He had been taken to this realm, to the Sacred Realm, seven years before. While he was and still is the infamous Hero of Time, he was not ready for such a large task at his young age. So, his body had been whisked away to the Sacred Realm where it remained for seven years in a deep slumber. Now, seven years later, he was ready, ready to save their world. The young man nodded in approval, and asked when he would be leaving. The old man smiled, delighted to see the impatience of the young man, and informed him that he was leaving now. The old man gave him his medallion as he left, the Medallion of Light, so that he might find the other five that were like him, destined to be the ones to aid the Hero of Time, and restore Hyrule to its former glory. Rarau watched as Link, the young warrior, sped off on beams of light into the next realm, and silently prayed that good would conquer evil once more.

~~

That fateful morning would be the last morning that evil would reign supreme. Malon still went about her daily chores, but with a renewed sense of hope. She felt the evil dissipating around her, and she hoped that she would see the fairy boy enter the ranch once more. Saria disappeared into the Forest Temple; intent on saving the place that she called home. She only prayed that her friend would be there to help her if things went wrong. Zelda stood there disguised as Sheik at the Pedestal of Time, awaiting the Hero's arrival. He would need guidance if he was to succeed, and she would be there every step of the way to help him. Even though Hyrule was still plagued with monsters, on that fateful morning, it never looked better.


End file.
